Good Night
by ovp
Summary: It was only at night when they came together that they could stop acting belligerent and hard headed; when he would whisper sincere apologies and she would gently tell him the truth. Spitfire
1. Habit

**Pairing: **Wally/Artemis

As a personal challenge to myself as I wait with anticipation for the next episode of Young Justice I have decided to write a five chapter story (chapter a day) till March 3. This is my first time writing an YJ fanfic so be as critical or benign as you want. All criticisms accepted. I know the first chapter is really cliché but it does get better I definitely have a few twists in store for this couple. _I do not own Young Justice._

So please enjoy _Good Night._

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><p><strong>Good Night<strong>

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><p>It was a horrible habit. <em><strong>Habit.<strong>_ That was the word he was sticking with as he hovered outside Artemis's door at one in the morning pacing frantically. It was not creepy, stalker-like, or disturbing—in fact if anyone looked at it from his perspective it was kind of sweet that he was so concerned for her well being that he had situated himself as a personal sentry outside her room at Mount Justice. No, it was not bordering on obsessive that he had been doing this since that failure of training exercise all those weeks ago. He stopped pacing, looked at the door, sighed bitterly, and proceeded to shove it open. Empty.

_ Perfect._

He sat down on her bed heavily, placing his elbows on his knees and leaning his head against his hands. This was so dumb. She was at home. He was supposed to be at home, yet here he was in the middle of Artemis's room because five minutes ago he had woken up from his recurring nightmare of snow, ice, aliens, and disintegration beams. He shook his head inhaling deeply. He'd never appreciated how much her smell placated him until it was gone.

Was this how it was going to be from now on? He'd have a terrible dream, run like a maniac to home base (because there was no way he was going to let those loud-mouth zeta tubes announce his unexpected entrance at this god forsaken hour there would be way too many questions), zip outside her room, and...sleep in her bed. True, he was no longer late for debriefing meetings, and he always got first dibs on M'gann's pancakes but this..._habit..._was going to either get him killed by Artemis or made a laughing stock by Dick. God damn stupid Dick who kept making kissy faces at him whenever he stood beside, sat behind, or generally was in the vicinity of the irate archer.

Wally lifted his head. This sucked. He was not supposed to feel this way. He was not supposed to have anything even remotely close to feelings for...ugh...blondie. He hated her! He can't think of two nice things to say about her and if he had to envision the perfect woman it certainly wouldn't be angular, sharp, snappy, and rude. Heck, no one on the team knew a thing about Artemis, well okay, Dick probably knew, but he knew dirt on everyone.

Shifting he pulled the evergeen covers around him. _No. Stop smiling. _He mentally snapped. He was not happy about this horrible situation. He was not happy that he was in Artemis's room wrapped up in her heavenly scent. He was not happy that Black Canary was playing Dr. Phil with the team in an attempt to get him to admit his nonexistent feelings. He was not happy that the harpy was alive. He was not happy that her scent was the only thing that could make him fall asleep. He was **not** in anything even remotely akin to "like" with Artemis. He punched her pillow bitterly before laying down, pressing his face into her pillow. He just wanted to sleep. Sleep and forget this stupid habitual ritual of his.

But sleeping in the siren's bed wasn't his only problem. On those nights when he approached her door and heard her quiet shallow breathing he'd slip inside and watch her. She was hauntingly beautiful in her moments of peacefulness, when nothing seemed to threaten her. He'd always assumed that she was someone who would sense an intruder anywhere in her vicinity since she was always so defensive. But she clearly did not sleep with one eye open because he would sit in the absolute darkness of her frigid room until dawn watching her chest rise and fall rhythmically.

He growled angrily picking a long flaxen hair from the duvet and weaving it between his fingers, cursing when it snapped. _He wanted to see her. _That was the worst part of this whole mess. On those nights when he ran here faster then sound, and quietly padded into her room just to hear her silent breathing brought him immense comfort. But she wasn't here tonight.

"My, my, my don't we look cozy," whispered a sarcastic voice from the doorway. Wally froze. Maybe it was just another one of his delusions, as he quickly chanced a look over his shoulder to see the bane of his existence silhouetted in the doorway, harsh fluorescent light streaming into the room from behind her frame. "Get lost Kid Idiot." Nope. Real Artemis was in her real room, and he had been caught red handed cozying up to her bedspread.

"Please, don't flatter yourself," he sputtered pushing himself away from the mattress, "Must have taken a wrong turn." Artemis snorted in response.

"You expect me to believe you thought this was your room?" Her arms were crossed over her chest and her hip was pushed to the side defiantly, "Seriously?" There really was no way to answer that question without getting his foot lodged in his mouth permanently.

Wally had never one of those people who could pull off "understatement." This was clearly proven by the obnoxious shade of yellow he had painted the walls of his room and aside from the souvenir shelf his mother had taken this fantastic opportunity to ship off everything piece of _Flash and Kid Flash_ merchandise Wally owned to his "second" home in the hopes that she might be able to find her son's bed again in his pigsty of a bedroom. So not only was the room yellow, it was filled to the brim with red _Flash _knick knacks making the once neat room into a personified _Kid Flash/Flash_ shrine. As an added touch he had gotten a red carpet installed so that whenever he heard the tell tale _recognized: B07 Artemis, _he could rapidly shuffle his feet on the floor, and then subject Artemis's hair to a static electricity tirade. No his room was as bright as his personality and it had come back to bite him in the butt.

"Honest mistake." Artemis rolled her eyes at his response.

"Oh sure. I believe you," she drawled, "You just happened to mistakenly stumble into the room three doors down from yours, on the left side of the hallway, with the painted black door that does not have a single _Flash _insignia anywhere on it. Yeah, mistake, sure."

"It was," he was aware of how squeaky his voice sounded as it cracked from her inquiry. Growing impatient with his stupidity and the fact that he clearly was not making any effort to move from the confines of her sheets, Artemis angrily kicked the door closed with her foot stormed over to the bed and laid down on top of the covers. Trapping him between her body and the wall in a cotton prison.

"_Artemis!"_

"Look Baywatch, I really don't care at the moment because I'm tired as hell but if you so much as touch me anytime tonight I'll make sure you can never run again." Wally gulped sparing a glance at her still costume clad form.

"Whatever you say," he paused searching for the right insult, "Arty."

She kicked him angrily before turning and glaring at him a malicious grin on her face.

"So then, Kid Creepy, are you going to tell me why you've been sneaking into my room the last few weeks to watch me sleep." Kid Flash blanched and sputtered as he struggled to find an excuse. Looking Artemis in eye for the first time since she'd caught him in her room he noticed a sticky red trail running down her cheek.

"You're bleeding!"

"Mmmm?" she raised a hand to her head feathering her fingers over the skin until she detected a bleeding gash above her left eyebrow. She pulled her hand away looking curiously at the red substance, "Looks like the thug got one good slug in." She shrugged pulling off the now damaged mask and tossing it to the floor.

"What were you even doing fighting criminals at this hour?" he questioned sounding a lot more concerned then he had intended.

"You sound like my mom," she joked that earned her a kick from him, but it was barely noticeable as he struggled to move beneath the blanket he was tucked under.

"Let me out."

"Fine," she quipped shifting slightly to lean against her headboard, "But once you're out, you're out. Permanently." He stopped struggling for a moment considering this. He hated her so why was he so terrified of leaving?

"I hate you," he muttered turning around to face the wall. True, he didn't like her but he was more worried about having those horrific nightmares again. Those illusions that only seemed to invade his subconscious when he was away from her—therefore he could handle suffering her belligerent company (at least for one night.)

"Feeling's mutual." She lay back down her back to him and went to sleep. Wally considered crawling out of her bed and escaping to his room, where he could silently mull over the fact that Artemis hadn't killed him for basically stalking her and he could question why she was doing solo crime fighting late at night without backup. But instead of escaping he lay awake for an hour listening to her gentle breathing and marveling how her hair glowed ethereally in the meager light from beneath the door and when sleep did finally find Wally West he realized he was at peace for the first time in what felt like forever.

Wally would never understand how the next morning she ended up in his arms, or how his face wound up pressed into her hair and hers into his neck - her exhales of breath deliciously tickling his skin forming goosebumps. He had quickly scrambled out of the sheets and her limbs his heart literally pounding a mile per minute as he stared at her sleeping form before zooming to the kitchen to try and hide his blush under a mountain of pancakes.

_Damn it!_ That was the best night's sleep he'd ever had.


	2. Secrets

As promised here is the next chapter. Mainly dialogue in this chapter but character development is to come. I appreciate all your kind reviews. **Hahhnahh, Spitfire3, KidFlash13, Trylan Aire, randommonkeyz998, and Irenerb** (Thank you all for your fantastic comments of support. Thank goodness someones thinks my characterization is ok because I was starting to wonder if my characters were way off in fluffville). To **YoungTitan213** thank you for your wonderful and insightful comment. I definitely see Wally as a very childish character when it comes to facing his real feelings, by the end of the story hopefully he won't be in denial anymore. Thank you for the grammar comment you have no idea how much I appreciate that, I have been cursed to type in run on sentences.

Thanks to the silent readers as well.

_Disclaimer: I do not own Young Justice or its characters._

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><p>Good Night<p>

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><p>The next time she came to him.<p>

He had just returned from the medical bay after getting some pretty nasty cuts treated when he had ambled into his room and seen Artemis propped up by the pillows on his bed. He had stared at her confused before asking,

"What are you doing?"

"Don't know."

"Dumbest answer ever." She shrugged leaning further against the pillows appraising him with steely eyes as he searched for a clean shirt among the mess which littered his floor. He was still in his uniform and he really wanted a shower, so why was Artemis in his room bothering him with that stupid smirk on her face?

"You never told me why you've been coming into my room, Baywatch?" There was no need to give specifics they both knew what she was talking about. "Like a said before it was a random slip in sanity where I mistakenly mistook your room for mine," he absentmindedly picked up a shirt trying to remember if he'd worn it.

"You've been sleeping in my bed, Wallace."

"Have not!" Artemis smirked at his childishness as he indignantly threw the shirt on the ground and glowered at her. Clearly the boy was very much in denial about his little habit.

"You shed like a cat," she stated very firmly liking the way a blush was crawling up his cheeks, "I've got more moronic red hair on my pillow then your IQ." Wally opened and shut his mouth as he processed what she had said and realizing its implications forcibly swallowed his protests.

He couldn't deny he had been her room because she had forensic evidence and he couldn't say that he didn't shed because it would give her an opportunity to strike with a "idiot" comment because he'd be admitting his IQ was lower than the hair that was accumulated in her room. She was smirking at him watching as he tried to figure a way out of her quip.

"What cat got your tongue?" He let out a frustrated growl before pointing an accusing finger at her,

"Look, who's talking you sadistic woman you're on MY bed!"

"Revenge," she stated running her hand over the _Flash _bolt embroidered onto his duvet (why was that making him blush!), "And what are you going to do about it Flash Boy?" And Wally really, really wanted to throw Artemis out of his room but he just didn't have the energy. She must have cursed him...if he believed in curses. Because since their little rendezvous three nights ago he appeared to only be able to fall asleep in her vicinity for some torturous god forsaken reason and he was too tired and too sore to have the energy to drag his body to her room tonight so he settled for falling on top of her in an act of mock revenge. Unexpectedly as his fingers brushed her sides Artemis let out a minute chuckle – that got his attention.

"Well, well, well," he leered looking down at the stoic archer who all of sudden appeared to find the ceiling over his left shoulder very interesting, "What were you saying about revenge?" And before Artemis could utter 'don't' the annoying redhead was tickling her and she was violently laughing and kicking her legs trying to throw her attacker off. His tirade didn't cease until she slammed her forehead against his, using his yelp of pain as a opportunity to flip them over, and Wally gulped as she towered above him panting and rosy...

It really sucked to be a boy going through puberty.

Before Artemis could comprehend what was happening he had vigorously shoved her off, grabbed a random assortment of clothes, and zipped into the ensuite bathroom for a very cold shower. As he stood under the stream of water his jaw set, gnawing at his lip he urged his mind to stop operating at such a high speed because _certain_ thoughts were flitting through his subconscious so fast he had no idea what to do with them.

He had wished rather then expected Artemis to be gone when he reemerged from the bathroom fifteen minutes later. He had ardently hoped he would not have to see her for the rest of the night so that he could get his heart palpitations under control, but he realized with finality upon seeing her sleeping form on his bed that was not going to happen.

"Wow," she whistled appreciatively, "You must have been really dirty." One of her eyes cracked open appraising him and on instinct he responded,

"Yeah, I was," then he smacked himself in the forehead as he realized just how wrong his statement had sounded. _Curse the person who ever gave the word dirty a sexual connotation. _Now she was outright laughing at him her eyes closed but her body shaking with mirth.

"Yes, ha-ha," he snapped not liking being the object of her ridicule (not that it was new), "Now move over!" Her eyes flashed open the stormy irises fixed on his green ones searching until they appeared satisfied and she shuffled to the farther side of the bed.

"It's still true," she stated dryly turning her back to him as he lifted the blanket and slid under replacing the cold air with his warm body,

"What is?" he asked sleepily not bothering to cover his yawn as exhaustion began to overcome him.

"Touch me and die." Wally merely rolled his eyes used to her idle threats and to prove his point reached over grabbing Artemis's waist and pulling her into an awkward hug,

"Look," he mumbled his eyelids drooping, "Still alive."

"Wally."

He groaned, "This had better be good."

"Sportsmaster's my father." Wally was suddenly very awake as the statement issued from her lips and hung in the air between them. The cuts on his forearm ached at the mention of the criminal who had put them there earlier that evening.

"Are you sure?" he had blurted out not quite comprehending what was going on in this fragile moment between friendship and platonic conspiracy. She cuffed the side of his head,

"Yes, I'm sure. Idiot," she tacked on, "And that's not all."

"Wait," he breathed deeply his hold on her slackening, "Just give me a minute to process this. So that lunatic criminal with the hockey mask is your dear ol'dad and he's being using us as target practice for giggles."

"Cheshire's my sister." Wally nearly choked but he managed to croak out a meek,

"What?"

"My mother's a criminal."

"Wait, let me guess this one," interjected Wally, "Your grandfather sells hand craved Maghony furniture." Artemis looked at him. Her eyes narrowed; he wasn't sure if it was from annoyance at his totally inappropriate joke or if she was trying to appraise him critically as the confused boy who had just been told the person he was cuddling with came from a family of murderers.

"It would be nice if that were true," she stated wistfully shifting out of his grasp and lying on her back to look at the ceiling, "But that's it. Mom, Dad, and Sis, my family tree of jailbirds." Wally mimicked her movements the best he could in the cramped bed.

"So Green Arrow?"

"Green Arrow isn't my uncle, that was just a cover to join the team." He doesn't know where the next question comes from but it tumbles unbidden from his lips.

"Have you ever killed anyone?" His question was followed by a pregnant pause,

"Yes."

"Was it by choice?"

"It was for survival," she stated simply, "Don't know if that's choice or not. Dad loved to place me in situations where it was either I die or the lunatic who was after me dies. I'm still here." Wally wasn't sure what to do with this overload of information. This was crossing a line that had been drawn in the dirt long ago when he had fallen flat on his face wearing nothing but swim trunks in front of her, in fact he was pretty sure by now that the line was very far behind them but the metaphor still applied – Artemis was sharing her secrets. Secrets she had never told anyone before. Secrets that were now his too.

"Soooo," he drawled because he possessed the inability to keep quiet for more then five seconds, "What now?"

"Well to be honest I was expecting to be kicked out of your room by now and you to be yelling at everyone to stay away from the deranged criminal spawn," her lips quirked into a genuine smile, "But I guess I was wrong."

"Wait you actually thought I'd kick you out? Why would I do that?" he mentally cursed at how needy he sounded.

"Because you've been trying to get Speedy on the team since the moment I got here."

"It's Red Arrow."

"Oh, I know that," she laughed, "Just not going to give the jerk the satisfaction." Wally swallowed thickly catching her face out of the corner of his eye,

"I don't want you off the team." Her eyebrows shot up and she looked like she was about to respond with a pointed comment recanting a list of instances when he had blatantly said so but he interrupted her, "I haven't wanted you off the team, since like, Bialya. And I know I can be a pain but that's all part of the Kid Flash charm, lots of mouth and no brain."

"Charm is not the word I would use. But thanks, I needed to hear that." Both parties fell silent as they continued to stare at the ceiling. Then ever so slowly Wally felt his hand _involuntarily _move towards Artemis's until his warm calloused fingers were gliding together with hers.

And she didn't say a word.


	3. Home

Whew. Almost didn't make my deadline of a chapter a day. Thank you to the kind reviewers. **Pretender, chasingfireflys, Flur, Hahhnahh, Trylan Aire, Dextra2, ShenanigansKid, Irenerb, randomonkeyz998. **Thanks for all your fantastic reviews I really thought last chapter was one of my weakest ones but your words of confidence definitely made me feel better. I'm pretty sure this chapter has a lot of grammar problems but for the sake of meeting my deadline I'll fix them later so apologies in advance.

Thanks to the silent readers as well.

_Disclaimer: I do not own Young Justice or its characters._

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><p>Good Night<p>

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><p>It became an interesting game they danced.<p>

On nights when they were both at Mount Justice it was battle to see who would break first and then quietly sneak into the other's room. A battle they were both realizing that they didn't mind losing. As the days, turned into weeks, and the weeks into months they both began to accumulate the each other's property in their respective rooms. It was easier that way.

The sock drawer in his dresser became filled with her clothes and an arrow making kit was stashed away in a corner of his room. She had given him a third of her closet and a drawer in her desk that he had crammed full with as many snacks as would fit. There was an equilibrium developing between the pair, and true, they still fought like cats and dogs and both claimed to hate each other on a daily basis but the team accepted that despite their differences at the end of the day the two would fall into step together and finally be back on the same page no matter what words had been spoken.

Surprisingly nobody questioned their obscure arrangement; they had their own problems and secrets to deal with. Robin struggled to comprehend his feelings for two very different girls who all of a sudden were forefront in his mind. M'gann and Superboy wondered how they should express their feelings for each other because neither of them had any comprehension of courting rituals. M'gann being from Mars had been taught completely different approach mating rituals and the G-Gnomes had never bothered to teach Superboy about love, so instead both looked wistfully at each other wishing for a way to broach their feelings. Kaldur tried to ignore the stinging pain of Tula's rejection but even so much as seeing water sent his mind reeling back to Atlantis.

Their mentors watched silently. Mostly. When Green Arrow had found out about their late night sleepovers he had threatened Barry that if the red-haired philander ever did anything to his "niece" the boy would become a living pincushion superspeed or not. Barry had merely watched amused, understanding his nephew's need to have someone to ground him so he never tried to stop him when he snuck out of the house late at night to race to the mountain, he just shook his head held Iris a little firmer and went back to sleep. Black Canary watched knowingly trying very hard not to laugh at the boy's clumsy stumbles around the blonde. Batman and Red Tornado did not understand the strange arrangement between the pair but so long as it did not affect team dynamics they really didn't care. And everything was going swimmingly in their little arrangement until the "fight."

Wally angrily threw a pillow at his door looking at it bitterly as it bounced off and landed on the floor. Stupid harpy. Tight assed witch. He bit his lip hard throwing his body back against the mattress...why? Why did she have to be so infuriating!

Ok, so maybe getting under her skin right after her mother's death was not the best idea. But death wasn't the right word to describe what had happened to Mrs. Crock but he didn't feel like walking on the "murder" mine – the point was he had only been trying to help! But hindsight was twenty-twenty whenever anything concerned Artemis and he had thought that at this stage in their...relationship, or whatever it was, that it would be alright.

Heck, he had put his arm around her at the funeral and she had cried on his shoulder. But try as he might he couldn't be completely distraught over the situation because as sad as it was the bottom line was the lady being buried had done horrible things to good people. Although he'd never voice those thoughts M'gann appeared to have sensed them and sent him a disapproving look.

But the funeral was over. Mrs. Crock was dead and since heaven and hell didn't exist it was time to move on. He had patiently waited the forty minutes it took to ride back to the cave in the bioship before asking the question that had been bugging him since the memorial service. Artemis had just sat down on the couch when the words had sprung from his lips.

"So where are you going to live now?" Artemis bristled her whole form going rigid at the question,

"Why do you want to know?" she snapped testily her eyes narrowing before she turned her attention to the fidgeting speedster.

"I was thinking and just follow me on this," he was rambling but she was also being startlingly quiet, "That you could stay here...uh, with me...not with me but in our, er, your room."

"No."

"What! Why?"

"Because I like where I live." At her comment his mood soured. Wally knew where she lived. He had asked Robin a month ago for the intel; it was mainly on a whim because Artemis never seemed to know any of the landmarks he kept telling her about in Star City but when he had finally discovered where she resided he had been very much whelmed.

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><p><em>"So ol'pal, ol'buddy, ol'friend of mine I need a teensy weensy little favor," began Wally leaning on the console that Robin was furiously typing away at. Robin didn't stop typing merely grunting his assent for Wally to continue, "Where does Artemis live?" The keys stopped clacking and Robin gave the speedster a dubious look before responding.<em>

_ "What makes you think I'd know?"_

_ "Oh come on," Wally huffed, "You know everything about everyone I just want this one tiny little tidbit of information."_

_ "Why don't you ask her yourself?" usually Dick would support him in his endeavors for mischief but he seemed uncharacteristically protective of Artemis's identity and this unnerved Wally for a moment as he looked very seriously at his friend._

_ "Dick," he said evenly although his voice cracked at the end, "Is there something you're not telling me?" In frustration Robin threw a batarang at him, which he nimbly avoided._

_ "Pissing me off will not help your cause Wall-man."_

_ "You didn't answer the question," Wally points out because he has to know, needs to know that he hasn't hurt his best friend by __**bunking**__ with the girl he might possibly like _–_ the bro-code was invented for a reason. Robin mumbled to some higher power for guidance as he looked at the ceiling before pinching the bridge of his nose and answering Wally._

_ "I do not have a thing for Artemis. I think you've got that covered."_

_ "Wha _–_I do not have a thing for blondie." Robin merely cackled at him. "I don't!"_

_ "And Batman likes sunshine."_

_ "Just give me her address Rob." In true Boy Wonder fashion he had eventually given him Artemis's address but only after Wally promised to lose every Smash Bros game for the next month even to M'gann. However, the coordinates lead him first through the Amazon rainforest, then up a pyramid, and across the Canadian tundra before his feet finally settled in a run down neighborhood. Out of breath and swearing revenge on the masked brat Wally finally decided to try and figure out where he was._

_ He when he realized he was in Gotham and was appalled to find himself to be in one of the shadiest neighborhoods he'd ever had the misfortune of stumbling upon. The buildings were old and crumbling and he swore that at every corner some illicit act was happening: drug dealing, prostitution, car theft, littering _–_ the list was endless. But he did eventually find her address. She was sitting on the stoop watching idly over a few children who were playing on the street. The adolescents appeared blissfully unaware that the only thing stopping the suspicious stranger who was ogling them was the archer's stern gaze. All Wally could do was stare; stare at Artemis's life and wish he could change it._

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><p>"You're not safe there," he blurted out. Her expression got even darker and angrier and suddenly her livid eyes were boring into his face and she was mentally calculating what he had just said. No one (not even him) had ever called Artemis dumb and she reached the conclusion he was hoping would evade her very quickly,<p>

"You know my address," she breathed out her voice acidic, "You know where I live!"

She furiously shoved him away and Wally was unexpectedly hurt by her reaction. He was only concerned for her well being, he's her teammate. She's alone and hurting and everyone she loves is gone (or hunting her down.) He just wants to be there for her and she's acting like he's invaded her privacy or read her diary. With each push his anger escalated so he reacted the only way he knew how with the archer – biting and snarling.

"So what!" he yelled, "God Artemis you live in a dump! The slums of Gotham come on! You're Oliver Queen's '_niece_' and you live in that disgusting hell hole." If Wally could read micro-expressions he might have noticed that her eyes were surprisingly wet and that every part of her body was filled with shame and embarrassment but Wally was too focused on being enraged so he misses these things, "Artemis you live with scum! Garbage! That makes you garbage!"

Her glare turned frosty. "Kid Flash." She never uses his superhero name. Even when they're in public she usually uses a nickname to address him and his blood runs cold at the wall of unfamiliarity it builds between them, "Those slums are my home, and the scum you claim I live with made me who I am."

She stood in front of him staring him down but she breaks eye contact first. Wally smirks at her thinking he's won and they can go back to joking around but she doesn't return the gesture in fact she doesn't react at all except to turn and march out of the room.

"Artemis! Don't walk away you coward!" At this point both parties realized they have drawn the rest of the team into the living room with their screaming, but Artemis doesn't turn around and doesn't stop. Wally doesn't follow her. He just stood in front of the zeta tubes for fifteen minutes after her departure before returning to _his _room.

For three days Artemis does not come to cave. In fact not even M'gann's or Kaldur's pleading calls and messages can persuade her to pick up her cell phone. Her communicator's off and Wally has a sneaking suspicion that Green Arrow is watching him from the shadows, sharpening his arrows. But two things haunt Wally as he lies on his bed staring at the ceiling (aside from his imminent death by arrow) the first is the fact that he can't sleep. He doesn't remember how the bed became so large and so cold, it's physically impossible. It's the same bed he's had since the beginning – before Miss High-and-Mighty joined. Yet every time he goes to lie down he's facing the door with bated breath, and he can't seem to shake her smell from the pillows no matter how much he washes them.

The second, the more alarming of the two, is he realizes she is now alone in an empty apartment in one of the worse, most violent neighborhoods in Gotham, and for some reason he's terrified that she hasn't called not because she's pissed off but because someone got to her and there's no one anymore to notice she's missing. He vibrates in agitation and nervousness as he processes that thought.

Before he knows it he's standing in front of the Helmet of Fate blandly wondering about Kent Nelson and Inza. How did they meet? Was it love at first sight? The dying man's lingering advice invades his conscience for the briefest of moments, _"Find your own little spitfire. One who won't let you get away with nothin'."_

With those thoughts clouding his mind he's running before he knows it and finds himself standing in front of her door, knocking. Within minutes its wrenched open by an irate teenager and grey eyes meet green.

"What the hell, Wally!" her fingers tightened their grip on the doorframe, "Go away!" His eyes flitted up for a moment to catch hers before they returned to worn floorboards, his eyebrows knitting together and very deep scowl adorning his freckled face.

"The polite thing to do would be to invite me in," he snapped. His jaw clenching as he tried to not punch the strange Chinese lady who had stalked up behind him waving a broom yelling _"Stranger! Out! Out!"_

"You've got to be joking."

"People are staring and," he deflected the broom thwack that was about to hit him in the face, "Violent. No wonder you want to live here."

"Just get in," she ground out moving aside to let him enter quietly saying something to the lady before shutting the door.

This was the first time he had been in her "home." It really wasn't much to look at, sparsely furnished, unpainted walls, and only a few pictures here and there. He noticed that certain parts of the carpet were heavily worn by wheelchair tracks chronicling the life of its former occupant. Not one to remain sullen for long her cracked a smile at her before gesturing at the door,

"That's one hell of a security system."

"What do you want _West_?"

"Aren't you going to offer me a seat or a beverage? I ran all the way here I'll have you know." There was no way to describe Artemis's expression, it was stuck somewhere between disbelief and annoyance at his audacity. Deciding to make the decision for her he moved toward the couch and sat down crossing his arms and nodded haughtily at the adjacent seat. "We need to talk."

"Surprisingly I don't want to talk to you." She stands firm and tall before him arms crossed with a scowl settled on her face. Wally doesn't realize till that moment how relieved he is to see her – three days is a lot longer then he expected.

"Your hair's down," he comments not quite comprehending the curtain of yellow that has settled around her face, "It looks weird."

She glowers at him and still says nothing. Growing more and more agitated he stands gently pushing down on her shoulders so she'll sit down, and even once seated she still says nothing. Her glare is piercing and the silence painful and Wally just wants it to end. Just wants her to yell at him again and call him out on his crap. He wants her to snort at his lame pickup lines and punch him when he empties the milk carton and never buys a new one. It all just bubbles to the surface until he hears Nelson's words burning in his ears and he shouts,

"You're a spitfire okay!" If the flabbergasted expression on Artemis's face is anything to go by Wally knows that he has just officially confused her even more.

"Look, sometimes people need spitfires in their lives to tell them when they're wrong. So I'm wrong happy." Artemis shook her head as if trying to dispel the crazy that had settled there,

"Wally, you are always wrong. If you haven't figured that out by now I'm not sure what I can contribute."

"Hey! I'm not always wrong," he bit out, "Just in this instance."

"What are you even talking about?" cried Artemis exasperated throwing her arms up in the air; her body crumpling in on itself as she pitched forward planting her forehead on her knees. Wally felt...bad. Artemis just looked so tried and exhausted. She didn't even look like Artemis. Especially with her pretty hair framing her face (he did not just think that.) Apparently though his mouth and brain were on autopilot as he continued to talk,

"You're a spitfire," he reiterated as if talking to a small child. "You call me out on everything, and you drive me insane with your constant criticism, your hand is always on a collision course with some part of my body but if you're not around the bruises will fade and I might never be able to dislodge the foot I'm always constantly shoving in my mouth and I don't want that. I want..." he trailed off not quite happy with where his thoughts were going. He wasn't ready to make that kind of declaration; not to Artemis anyway. He was only fifteen there shouldn't be any sort of expectation or need for that kind of serious talk. "I want you to come home."

"I am home," she responded darkly. "The slums, remember, the garbage." Wally paused, but trying to think of the rights words to say were hard when he was the one who had made her feel this way. Since words are no longer the proper form of communication Wally decides his next choice is action so in about five milliseconds Artemis is in his arms and he's carrying the struggling archer down the hall; there's only three doors and he kicks the first one in to find – the bathroom.

"Well that was anticlimactic," he mumbled. He is acutely aware that Artemis's nails are digging into his collar and she's clutching to him like he's her last lifeline.

"Third door," she hissed, "Bed on the left." He takes the five steps needed to get down the hall, as he shoulders the door open and the room smells...stagnant, empty, cold – like it wasn't even lived in – which the bed on the right attests to. But he walks confidently into the room sitting down on the bed with her still securely in his arms and somehow everything is alright again.

"Purple sheets?" he asks skeptically, "I thought you were more...green."

"They were Jade's favorite," he doesn't quite understand what she means but he can only assume that Jade is somehow important.

"We'll pack them up," he says promptly, "Just come _home." _Artemis grumbles something about persistent, annoying morons but she shifts out of his grip to lie down and Wally eagerly joins her. She breathes deeply as he holds her their hands interwoven.

"I don't know what you've heard but I hate you," she states but he sees the hidden smile, "So don't go thinking there's any deeper meaning to why I'm agreeing to your ridiculous scheme."

"Wouldn't dream of it, beautiful," he responds.

"And to clarify I am still extremely pissed off. You don't get to say those things Wally, especially when you don't know anything about my life."

"I know you're better then this Artemis." She looks at him eyes shining and he swears he's seeing stars. They don't need to kiss. Which is shocking because this is the part where the couple always kisses but its a little too cliché for both their tastes and neither of them are ready. So she settles for slugging him in the shoulder and he decides to whine just a little less then usual while pulling her closer and muttering,

"So my room or yours?"

* * *

><p>When she had finally consented and brought her meager belongings to the cave (purple sheets included – but he never sees them on her bed) Wally had immediately stolen the cardboard boxes from her room and placed them in his. After transferring the boxes three times between their rooms Artemis finally conceded and ordered Wally to move her dresser into his room as punishment for his little stunt since he was being so <em>unreasonable. <em>

"What do you keep in this thing!" he huffed as he dragged the chest of drawers down the hall, "Rocks?"

"You're lucky I'm not asking you to move the bed." Wally gave her an incredulous look.

"Contrary to popular belief you not only snore but thrash around in your sleep like a lunatic. I'd like to get a decent night's rest every once and a while."

"You should be so lucky." He waggles his eyebrows flirtatiously and Artemis rolls her eyes – a sign that normality is returning.

"You're not even halfway there," she commented dryly looking down the hall.

"Then help me," he grumbled. She merely chortled tossing him a granola bar as his stomach growled in protest at the exertion that was draining his energy, "By the way Kid Genius why don't you take the drawers out."


	4. Apartment

Well here we are, one chapter to go and only two days till new Young Justice. Once again a shout out to all my lovely reviewers: **MaiMeako, monkeymail **(Got to love the drawers!), **Irenerb, Archer122 **(Happy Birthday!), and **Ty****ian Aire **(Thank you for your kind reviews).

Thanks to the silent readers as well.

_Disclaimer: I do not own Young Justice or its characters._

* * *

><p>Good Night<p>

* * *

><p>Wally had decided they should move in together forthwith. One, it would make things more convenient and, two, it seemed the next logical step in their seemingly illogical arrangement. They weren't gangling fifteen year olds anymore, in fact, at nineteen the once covert operations group of superhero protégés were very much in the public eye. Younger, less mature sidekicks had begun to visit Mount Justice taking on the silly missions that their team of six had once had to deal with. Thankfully now they were much older and wiser and were allowed to take on some of the more dangerous missions where people actually saw and appreciated their efforts – they were like the pseudo Justice League.<p>

He had no problems being in the limelight, as an attention seeker he loved being able to beat up the bad guys in broad daylight and get the credit. He was still Kid Flash sexiest (if only in his head) young hero out there but what he did not enjoy about the team's new little hero romps was all the unwanted attention Artemis was receiving from some very lecherous fans. In fact, he made his frustration and anger known by planting himself firmly between the archer and any civilians who dared deem themselves worthy to approach, practically hissing at them like a pissed off cat.

And it just got worse. The more missions they did the more popular she became. Apparently some stupid hormone driven teens were more aware of what had taken Wally four years to realize – Artemis was amazing _and_ beautiful. Wally now appreciated all those comments that Artemis made about how men were downright morons as he glared at the hoards of them who clamored around battle areas just to catch a glimpse of the blonde and, ironically, he had a very strong urge to shelter Artemis from the rather stupid opposite sex. Then there were all the trashy tabloid comments about her:

_"Ass"ets: 10/10 _

_Body : 10/10_

_Hotness: Scales broken guys she's smoking_

Gleefully Wally got into the habit of running by ALL the news stands he could find at top speed causing every single degrading comment to blow away on the wind. It was the combination of all these little things that had lead him to the decision that it was time they moved out of Mount Justice and in together. He didn't really care if it was Gotham or Central City; speed and zeta-tubes could take care of any problematic commute he just knew that their relationship could no longer be contained in their shared room in Mount Justice. Which was proven by the fact he was currently chasing after one of the twerps who had decided to steal a pair of his boxers and flaunt it around the base. The new protégés were ridiculously immature, he was never this bad! _He wasn't. No matter what Robin tells you._

Zooming by the kitchen screaming bloody murder as he searched for the evil little pest his eyes landed on Artemis who was sitting at the counter staring at him amused. His mood took a hundred and eighty degree turn for the better.

"They stole your underwear again, Baywatch?"

"God, yes. How do they keep getting in our room?"

"Robin, probably gives them the code for fun."

"So why don't you stop him?"

"They only ever mess with your stuff."

Figuring the kid was not giving himself up anytime soon, Wally strode toward the archer planting himself firmly beside her. That was another thing that had solidified his decision to ask Artemis to get an apartment with him, the new male sidekicks had taken it upon themselves to outrageously flirt with Artemis whenever they got a chance, whether it was to just piss him off Wally didn't know but he all of a sudden understood how Superboy felt all those years ago when he had continuously flirted with the resident martian. It sucked.

"So spending the night at the Flash's?" she questioned, "I heard the big announcement is today."

"Aren't you coming?" he asked shocked, "Official invite and all."

"Nah," she shrugged, "Social events aren't my cup of tea, besides I'd just cramp your style. You're about to be named the next Flash and all."

"All the more reason you should be there!" he snapped, "This is a big deal to me, and you're a big part of my life!" Realizing what he just said his face turned as red as his hair, "I...uh...everyone else is going to be there." Artemis shrugged,

"I'm not everybody else." She delicately pushed her fingertips together leaning heavier on the counter before frowning as if struggling to find the words to voice her thoughts, "Wally, I've got something to tell you."

"Humph, I don't think I want to hear it." At his childish response Artemis seemed to become instantly more defensive and irritated,

"Fine," she quipped. She got up and in panic Wally was about to reach for her arm and tell her he was being a jerk but before he could even perform the action the little imp from before ran into the kitchen proudly waving the Batman boxers like a flag,

"Hey sweetcheeks!" he purred at Artemis who wryly raised an eyebrow, "Your boyfriend wears some pretty lame underwear." Whatever Wally was going to do was forgotten as he lunged for the boy and once again proceeded to chase him around the mountain. _Note to self, place locks on drawers._

* * *

><p>"Hey, kiddo," grinned Barry clamping a hand down on Wally's shoulder, "Why the long face?" Wally could understand the ex-Flash's concern, he'd been bragging about this moment for most of his adolescence but the fact that Artemis wasn't there was taking a bigger toll on him then he expected – completely dampening his mood while simultaneously deflating his ego.<p>

"Nothing," he whispered shrugging the hand off his shoulder, "I'm ecstatic."

"Wow," responded Barry sarcastically, "I must have missed that emotion beneath your overbearing depression. What's up?"

"Artemis..." At the man's laughter Wally grew indignant. "Hey, you asked!"

"Yeah, but Wally I actually thought something serious was wrong," the man chuckled, "You and the archer are always at odds with each other, the day you two can tolerate each other's presence is the day the world will end."

"Ha, ha."

"So how does it feel to be the new Flash?" asked Barry changing the topic.

"Ok, I guess."

"You know what's the best part about being the official Flash?"

"What?"

"There's always a crime somewhere you can stop, so you can escape formal functions." Wally's eyes alighted with understanding before he gave his Uncle a huge smile.

"You are absolutely right Uncle Barry," he said pulling his goggles from his pocket, "I think there's probably a bank robbery happening right now that I could be stopping." Shaking his head Barry watched his ex-protégé take off, sometimes it was amazing how much help that boy needed in the matters of the heart.

"Where'd Wally go?" asked Iris standing beside him holding a plate with a massive piece of cake, "Barry you're not already teaching him your horrible habits, are you?"

"Nah, more like teaching him how to run towards the things he wants." Iris squeezed his arm,

"He'll be ok, right?"

"If he thinks with his brain he might be."

"Somehow that is not the least bit comforting Barry."

* * *

><p>Wally had run all the way to Mount Justice and was terrified when he discovered the archer was nowhere to be found; even the younger sidekicks could shed no light onto her whereabouts. Cursing he realized that Robin, now Nightwing, was most likely still at his party meaning there was no way he could call the little sleuth to investigate. Deciding the first place to look for clues should be their room Wally carefully punched in the <em>new <em>code (her birthday) and entered the comforting darkness.

Not much had changed since he forced her to move in, although she had painted the walls a pale blue to cover up the blinding yellow. Most of his Flash and Kid Flash merchandise had been moved into storage (because compared to all that stuff having Artemis there was way better) but she had let him keep his massive souvenir collection; every single memento weighed down the shelves with their memories. That was when he saw it, the white envelope placed on her desk. Ripping it open he read the message and his blood turned cold and his eyes clouded with anger as two words mocked him from the pristine white paper.

_Dad called. _He dropped the paper furiously and quickly changed into his Kid Flash costume (the Flash one was still being made to his proportions). There was no time to call for backup, no time to inform anyone – he'd race to find her wherever she was. _Stupid, headstrong idiot woman! Facing her crazy father solo! What the hell! _He tore out of the room with a sonic boom that caused the mountain to rumble as he sped out into the night.

He reasoned she couldn't have gone that far. Most likely the meeting would happen in Gotham, since that was her (their) home turf. He'd never considered and they'd never discussed what her relations meant to their dynamic. Was that what she had been trying to tell him earlier? He never could have imagined the implications of his distraction and childishness, would lead to her going solo to confront Sportsmaster. God, why was he so stupid! Seconds felt like hours as he searched Gotham at an ungodly speed, which ripped shrubs from the ground and sent newspapers flying as he zoomed through filthy neighborhoods. Then he saw it, his eyes catching a splash of green duking it out with a certified lunatic on a pier. Skidding to a stop he hollered,

"ARTEMIS!" If she heard him she didn't acknowledge him as she expertly blocked an attack intended for her ribs. Wally watched in horror as a bunch of burly men suddenly surrounded her and began swatting at her as she tried to nimbly avoid all their attacks, including her father's.

When they finally clipped her shoulder allowing the masked man to deliver a few swift punches to her stomach and chest Wally finally woke from his trance charging at the thugs, knocking them all out cold. But her focus seemed to be completely fixed on her father as she managed to land a blow only to be stabbed in retaliation with a knife he produced from his sleeve.

_ "Ugh..."_

"ARTEMIS!"

"Shut up, Kid!" she snapped, "Stay out of this!"

"Yeah," mocked Sportsmaster slicing through the skin on her forearm as she jumped above one of his kicks, "Stay out of this."

"Get an apartment with me!" she froze stupefied at his horrendous timing; what was even more shocking was the fact she was actually genuinely surprised – by now she knew of his horrible habit of asking the worst thing at the worst possible time.

"Ah, how sweet," laughed the assailant before he took advantage of her distraction and plunged the knife into her gut. He then turned his attention to the charging Kid Flash easily deflecting his punches after sidestepping and tripping him. Pressing his knee into the fallen hero's chest he began to deliver vicious blows all over his torso. "The little girl tells me she's retiring from heroing after I generously offer to take her back and now I find out her boy toy is the little dumbshit Kid Flash. Will wonders never cease." Pulling his head up by his red hair Sportsmaster slammed it back onto the boards of the dock. It made a sickening crack and Wally could feel his ears pounding. Sportsmaster leaned over him, "So when's the wedding?"

"Go to hell," the archer towered before the criminal wielding the knife he had used to stab her with moments before, swinging her uninjured arm back she stabbed him in the chest. She had purposely missed all his vital organs but the injury was sufficient for him to go down and stay down. As the abusive man slipped into unconsciousness he rasped,

"Still a coward, girl." Not even bothering to give a response she smashed her foot into his face, knocking him off Kid Flash. Collapsing beside Wally she clung to her profusely bleeding wound before pressing her face into his chest. Groaning he placed a hand on her shoulder realizing that neither of them were in any shape to move. Almost expectantly he waited for the bioship to appear before he realized that those days were over.

"Right I didn't call for back up," muttered Wally, "I'm a moron." He pressed a hand to his ear before realizing he hadn't bothered to put in his communicator either. "Hey Artemis..." He wasn't surprised when Artemis hit him.

* * *

><p>Wally had crawled into her bed in the Medical Bay at Mount Justice. It wasn't nearly as comfortable as their bed in his room but neither of them was allowed to leave the infirmary so he'd have to settle for lumpy and squished versus cold and alone. He warmly smiled at the archer,<p>

"Arty, you could move a little jeez."

She didn't say a word staring at him blankly which worried the normally hyperactive speedster. Artemis not quipping at him for his stupidity or for using her least favorite nickname was like him not eating. It did not happen. Ever. She clearly hadn't been sleeping if the bags under her eyes were any indication as she looked him over warily, her hands clenching tightly around the blankets. Wally felt his anxiousness grow at her reaction. The muscular nineteen year old had no idea how to deal with the pervasive silence that had fallen between them.

"So...giving up crime fighting..." he began awkwardly, "That's big."

"Not as big as someone yelling they want to get an apartment together while I'm trying to fend off seventeen hurly thugs. You win the award for most stupid statement of all time, Kid Doofus."

"It's Flash now. Though since you weren't at my little party I guess you didn't get the memo." She rolled her eyes.

"Guess that means Central City is doomed."

"Did you mean it?" he asked, "You're...you don't want to be a hero anymore."

"Did you?"

"Artemis," he groaned, "I'm being serious here. You answer my question first."

"No." He gave her a petulant look. "I want to be a hero but I don't belong in the Justice League and I don't belong in Young Justice anymore. I just...am."

"And that means..."

"Who knows," she sighed leaning farther back into the pillow, "It's all so complicated. I don't think Green Arrow would like it very much if I just went solo vigilante on him, and I'm pretty sure Batman would blow a fuse if I decided to start taking on his villains. Then there's you..."

"Me?" He hadn't realized he was holding her hand till she squeezed his,

"Well, if I'm not affiliated with the League anymore that means I'd have to leave the mountain and I'm okay with that."

"Wait a damn minute you can't seriously be suggesting we just split up."

"We aren't together," she commented dryly, "And I'm ready to move on, get my own place, and let you start your new 'flashy' life, but some idiot went and shouted something about moving in together."

"And I'm some idiot," he huffed shouldering her lightly, "I wasn't joking."

"That's what makes it scary."

"I'm serious."

"I know."

"Well?"

"I want to live in Gotham."

"Never said we couldn't, Beautiful."

"Aren't you attending Central University? What about the commute?"

"Did you seriously just ask _**me**_ that question?"

"Head trauma," she supplied.

"No. I'm pretty sure that was me," he looked at her hopefully, "Soooo is that a yes?"

"It's a maybe," she responded turning over to apparently go to sleep. Wally was having none of that.

"Oh, come on. You know you want to," he said suggestively eyebrows waggling, "Besides someone has to keep an eye on you or you'll go rouge."

"I said I'm retiring."

"Sure," he quipped sarcastically, "And I'm going to make my new Flash costume pink." Artemis snorted trying to contain her laughter as she imagined Wally in a pink Flash costume.

"You know it might be an improvement." He rolled his eyes at her jest.

"So yes?"

"Yes."


	5. Good Night

Well everyone this is the final chapter. Hopefully this has helped make the wait for the new Young Justice episode a little easier for everyone. I wish I didn't have to work on the weekend so I could actually watch it. Your support has been really encouraging and if I get enough reviews I do have some other story ideas I'd like to post. I'd like to thank the people who reviewed Chapter 4. Thanks to **Taren Hawk, Keepmovingforward2, Hahhahh, Irenerb,** and **randommonkeyz998. **I'm glad you all enjoyed the story.

This is one of the shortest chapters but its my favourite because I thought of this scenario long before I wrote the other chapters. I hope you enjoy it as much as I enjoyed writing it.

Thanks to the silent readers as well.

_Disclaimer: I do not own Young Justice or its characters._

* * *

><p>Good Night<p>

* * *

><p>The Justice League had watched confused when Flash had appeared from the zeta beam carrying the prone body of a blonde civilian, her blonde hair was speckled with blood and trailing nearly to the ground, and then they were very much shocked when the good natured joker began yelling at the heroes in an enraged voice to move out of the way. The Flash didn't do angry; inappropriate, funny, charming but never furious. Then there was the question of the woman who was clearly not part of the League and, therefore, did not belong in the Watch Tower medical bay but in an average human hospital. They watched silently as the Flash demanded she be treated first despite the gushing wound on his left leg and severe burn on his right arm shouting angrily as the doctors tried to pry the girl wearing the shirt with Green Arrow crest from his arms.<p>

Eventually though the woman had been stabilized and the now treated Flash had stopped pacing a trench in the floor and the heroes watched mystified as the red clad hero snuck into the woman's medical room and crawled into bed with the civilian – then it all made sense.

The heroines finally understood why Flash always flirted with them but never asked them out, and the male heros finally understood why Flash never stayed in his room on the Watch Tower always making his escape back to Earth as soon as possible. Some of the older superheroes who understood the delicate relationship between the pair smiled slightly (don't tell Batman you saw him) as the boy now man pulled the blonde's body flush against his and buried his face in her hair and quietly fell asleep.

However, by the fourth day of the "girlfriend's" coma it had taken half the league to force Flash out of the infirmary and into the cafeteria in order for the exhausted man to eat something. As a bitter Wonder Woman dragged the struggling superhero into the dining hall for the eighth time Nightwing longed for the days when Flash's ability to vibrate his molecules through solid objects had given him a headache and a bloody nose because no sooner would they sit him down then he'd have vibrated his way back to the infirmary planting himself firmly beside her prone form. But it appeared that Flash was finally tiring and the prospect of food was overcoming his implicit desire to be beside her so Nightwing gently patted his friend's shoulder and handed him a cheeseburger.

He was halfway through his fifteenth burger, ketchup smeared across his lips and his cheeks full of food when a timid nurse approached the table he was sharing with his former teammates. She had barely said the word _awake _before Flash had vacated his seat sending his friends' meals to the floor with the velocity of his take off, he had flashed them a cheesy grin of apology before zooming off and then M'gann had asked the question,

"Earplugs?"

* * *

><p>Wally was absolutely furious, no, he was not just furious he was livid, aggravated, pissed off... In fact there was no word in the dictionary to describe how angry he was with Artemis. She was retired, out of commission, not on call, supposed to safe and sound in their apartment when he was not around but oh no little miss archer had to go and play hero. But when he saw her form propped up against the pillows looking pale and weak but alive he had to force himself to wipe the happy smile off his face. No matter how beautiful she looked with her hair down he was going to give her a piece of his mind and with those final fleeting thoughts he sped into her room.<p>

"You have shit timing," he commented when he skidded to a stop beside her bed, "Both in archery and in waking up." He saw her tense clearly annoyed at his comment before responding,

"Eating Kid, really?"

"Ugh, is that the best you got? We're not fifteen!" he snorted using his thumb to wipe the ketchup away from his lips before glowering at her, "We agreed! No. More. Fighting. You promised! I confiscated your bow!"

"I saved your life."

"You fell off a hundred foot building, Arty! A hundred feet!"

"So I fell off a building, it's happened a hundred times before. I would have been just fine!"

"You would not have been _fine!" _he hollered, "You would have been a smudge on the sidewalk!"

"Good grief! I can take care of myself!" she scowled angrily at him and she paused running her eyes over his disheveled figure, "Could you please take that god awful costume off, it's hurting my eyes!" Wally squinted at her from behind his mask trying to decide if she was being serious or sarcastic. She'd always been the first person to rub in the fact that his costume not only showed every crevice of his toned body but also made him a living target with its vibrant color palette.

"Secret identity, remember?" he responded sarcastically waving a hand at the observation window, "Won't be a secret if I rip the spandex off." He would have tacked on a comment about her wanting to see his muscular body in nothing but his skivvies but that was when both parties noticed the crowd of curious League members who had gathered around the window. Now to be fair they were all new members who were not privy to the knowledge about the relationship the two shared but neither occupant of the room were happy that they were being made a spectacle of in front of some of the most powerful gossips in the world. Flash groaned before gently tapping the side of his head causing a link that hadn't been used in years to crackle to life.

_Hey Rob, mind making things a bit more private for me and Blunder Woman here?_

_ Wow. Never thought I'd hear your voice in my head again, _came the sarcastic reply from the archer who watched him airily.

_I must concur this is most peculiar, _agreed Kaldur, _It brings one nostalgia for the days when things were simpler. _

_Yes, we get it trip down memory lane and all, _snapped Wally, _But let's deal with the current situation. Doable or not Dick?_

_ Please anything is doable for Boy Wonder aka Nightwing, _came the confident reply, _Give me a minute. Bats updated security since I last hacked it._

_ This is very sweet, _the martian interjected joining the conversation accompanied by a grunt from Superboy, _We should do this more often. _Artemis allowed a smile to grace her features as she realized how much she had missed the voices in her head.

_Alright, _began Nightwing, _I've turned on the two way mirror function for your room, you can see out but others can't see in, and I've blocked all transmissions in or out. You're good to go. Now kiss and make up._

_ Robin you little troll! _hissed Artemis mentally pointing a finger at him, _If I find out you've recorded this conversation or are lying and we're about to become the Watch Tower's new hot topic I will find you and end you._

_ I'm so scared! _taunted Dick.

_Enough, _thought Wally his voice cutting through the mental link, _Artemis we're setting some things straight right NOW. _With that the link was severed by a giggling M'gann cooing about lovebirds and Artemis's eyes turned back to Flash as he pulled his cowl down revealing fiery green eyes that flared with rage and red hair that settled into a precarious mess of chaos.

"Happy now?"

"Well it is always so much easier to insult you to your face,"she fixed him with a sultry look of defiance which Wally ignored.

"God, why do you have to be so pigheaded?"

"If memory serves I'm not the one who was losing to the Joker, who's like fifty years old."

"Artemis, you do realize we're twenty eight, right?" he asked sarcastically.

"So?"

"It's time to grow up. I'm the hero. I wear the target. You do not enter frays of villainous pandemonium to save me," he held up a hand to stop her from talking, "Even if you can take the shot."

"The Joker would have killed you."

"Well, he nearly did," she looked at him confused because she knew that once her arrow had whizzed past the freak's head the barrel of his gun had immediately found a new target; her form perched precariously out of that twentieth story window in one of Gotham's tallest high rises.

"The bullet didn't touch me, Baywatch. I just lost my balance, fell out a window, and hit my head on that stupid gargoyle that all those stupid buildings in Gotham have to have. Bottom line I saved your spandexed keister." Wally had gotten very quiet before he whispered,

"Watching you fall out that window nearly killed me," a strangled sound wretched from his throat, "Why can't you understand? I hate you! I hate you! Don't you ever do that again!"

"Woah there now, don't go getting all romantic on me."

"You're sick you know that," he huffed finally slumping his shoulders his fury dissipating as he sat beside her on the bed. She stared at him contemplating their conversation and the implications it would have on their relationship.

"You know I never realized how much your costume looks like glorified pajamas," she said absentmindedly tossing a pillow at him and shifting over in order to give him room to lie down which he happily did. This was safe ground – this was what they were used to. "So what do we do now?" she whispered.

"Well first I'm going to burn every bow, arrow, and piece of Green Arrow merchandise in the apartment," came his quick reply as he dodged out of the way of her hand, "And then I think its time we established this."

"This?"

"You, me, us. This," he waved a hand dismissively between their bodies, "Because this might sound really dumb but I'm going to go out on a limb here and say we've been dating for a while?"

"Oh for years I suppose," she responded, "Although you never seemed to be able to work up the courage to kiss me, Kid Coward."

"And once all your pointy arrows are burned I will," he smirked inching closer in the cramped bed, "Because without ammunition I won't have to worry about getting stabbed for spontaneously making crazy passionate love to you."

"You do realize I could kick your ass any day of the week."

"I'd like to see you try." They both laughed at his comment their foreheads touching as they got closer until she was cradled in his arms and he was kissing her temple, her eyes, her cheeks, and finally her lips. She sighed through her nose relishing in the butterflies that filled her stomach as his lips moved tentatively against hers, it had taken a long time but it was so very much worth it. He pulled away nestling her face in the junction between his shoulder and his neck and they slept.

_Good night._

* * *

><p><em>And somewhere in an empty metal helmet Kent Nelson was laughing. <em>


End file.
